Timeline of Events
The following articles chronicles (almost) the entire alternate history timeline of the Gary Gears universe. Historical records from eras prior to 1964 are considered spotty due to a severe lack of information following the great nuclear dark age. The Georgian Era * 1714 - Inventor and beloved crackpot Francis P. Rockwell devises very first blueprint for an advanced piece of machinery powered by steam - a moving device known as a "train." He is laughed at by the entire scientific community. * 1745 - Rockwell dies penniless at the age of 89. There is no funeral. The blueprint for his invention is locked away in a safe in his childhood home, which is demolished the next day. * 1750 - Businessman Ronald Finnegan finds the blueprint for Rockwell's invention in the ruins of his childhood home and pockets them. There are no witnesses. * 1767 - The very first steam powered train is completed in London. It is hailed as the greatest invention of the century by King George III himself. * 1775 - The Revolutionary War begins. * 1778 - King George III commissions Finnegan's company to build a death weapon with it's steam technology. Finnegan designs a massive steam powered bomb. * 1780 - Finnegan's blueprints, even with massive compromises, prove to be too complicated and ambitious for his company to ever complete. * 1783 - England loses the Revolutionary War and is forced to recall it's forces. * 1801 - On his death bed, Finnegan confesses that he stole his original design from Rockwell. He is buried right next to him. Fifty-six years after his demise, Rockwell is finally commended for his brilliance. * 1820 - Steam based technology grows rapidly throughout the continent. New inventions include the record player, the gas oven, the refrigerator, the telephone, and the surround stereo system. The Victorian Era * 1837 - London becomes the technology center of the world. * 1851 - The very first robot ever built is created by inventor Herbert Maximus and presented at the World's Colombian Fair in the Crystal Palace. Clunky, slow and beautiless, it is only able to say three pre-recorded phrases and wave. * 1857 - The city of Circle Falls is founded. * 1861 - The Civil War begins. * 1862 - President Lincoln annexes a team of scientists from London, England to help turn the tide of war. The concept of a battalion of robotic soldiers is considered, but deemed too impractical to deploy. Inventions like power armor, automatic weapons and even the early designs of what would later be known as the world's first tank were all considered, but none would be completed before the end of the war. * 1863 - Finally an invention makes it past the conception stage - a giant, steam powered robot. It is codenamed "Project Wallace." It would not be completed for two years. * 1864 - A small group of scientists defect to the secessionist side. They are responsible for creating blimps and rocket launchers for the southern army. * 1865 - Project Wallace is completed. The robot is given a true name: "Union Prime." Union Prime is deployed in Atlanta on the lukewarm spring morning of March 31st. Spewing smoke and fire and raining destruction down upon the city, Atlanta's capital building is destroyed and nearly the entire city is burned to the ground. The south would declare defeat the very next day. * 1865 - Lincoln is nearly shot at Ford's Theater, Washington. However, his wife quickly jumps his would-be assassin and eats his face off. She is institutionalized for the rest of her life, leaving Lincoln in a state of grief. * 1867 - Lincoln's term ends abruptly when he dies in office of alcohol poisoning on April 15th. * 1871 - The last of Circle Falls' gold caches dry up, bring the city's economy to a screeching halt. The War of The Currents * 1880 - Businessman Thomas Edison releases public announcement that he plans to replace steam powered technology with electric power by the year 1914. Declaring that if he is not successful, he is a "brave jackass." * 1882 - Inventor Nikola Tesla begins working for the Continental Edison Company in France, designing and making improvements to electrical equipment. * 1885 - Tesla claims he can redesign Edison's inefficient motor and generators, making an improvement in both service and economy. Edison promises him he'll gain fifty-thousand dollars if he can. * 1886 - Edison goes back on his promise. Tesla quits Edison's company shortly after. * 1889 - Tesla's own company begins to construct an army of electric powered death robots. In response, Edison's own company begins to tighten security. Every guard is outfitted with power armor, the designs of which were, ironically, lifted from Tesla's own blueprints. * 1893 - The technological arms race between Edison, Tesla and Westinghouse creates a technological boom that benefits just about everyone but the warring parties. Unfortunately, the city of London, reliant on a mostly steam-based economy, goes into heavy decline over the years. * 1896 - Tensions mount between the two corporations when Tesla sends corporate spies to rescue an elephant named "Topsy" from execution during an Edison Company publicity stunt. In poor health condition, Tesla refits Topsy with cybernetic enhancements, creating the world's first cyborg. * 1898 - The "War of the Currents" becomes a literal war when Tesla, riding on the back of Cyborg Topsy, leads an army of killer robots unto Edison's corporate property. Edison orders his security officers to respond violently. The resulting bloodshed ends in a standstill. No one is ever prosecuted. * 1901 - Guglielmo Marconi invents the radio. It's certainly not as impressive as a giant freaking robot, but it gets the job done. * 1914 - World War One begins. Tesla loses all remaining funding and is forced to donate his DNA to the Circle Falls' museum of science for extra money. Assuming he is planning something insidious, Westinghouse, Edison and Marconi all do the same. * 1917 - The Imperial government of Russia is overthrown. The Soviet Union is formed. * 1918 - World War One ends. The Second World War * 1931 - Thomas Edison dies peacefully in his sleep. The very next day, Nikola Tesla digs up his grave and steals his watch. * 1933 - The Third Reich rises to power in Germany. * 1934 - German spies steal blueprints for Union Prime from US facility. Begin reverse engineering it. * 1935 - Although the initiative to create a new giant fighting robot proves to be a failure for the Axis, the research from the project proves to be useful. German scientists successfully engineer special power armor. The armor, being incredibly difficult and expensive to make, is only given to special ranking SS officers. * 1936 - German Scientists engineer a new version of their power armor. Much less bulky (but also less protective) this lightweight recon armor is given to all decorated members of the SS. The armor completely covers the wearer's face with a technological gas mask, giving the officers of the SS a ghastly, unsettling appearance. * 1937 - Japan invades China, initiating World War II in the Pacific. * 1938 - A German soldier volunteers for the very first human augmentation program in history. He dies on the operating table as the experiment fails. * 1939 - Germany invades Poland. German scientists design the first military attack helicopter. * 1940 - The US Government, concerned with growing international tensions, authorizes a program to rebuild Union Prime for a modern war, should the need arise. Meanwhile, Germany invades Western Europe. * 1941, June 22nd - German forces invade the Soviet Union. * 1941, December 7th - Japan bombs Pearl Harbor. * 1941, December 8th - President FDR declares war on Japan. Declares: "The spit* has hit the fan." (*may not have said "spit.") * 1942 - German scientists design blueprint for massive flying aircraft carrier to serve as a mobile, flying bunker for the Third Reich. The head scientist of the project sets the estimated completion date of the airship at approximately six years. German leader Adolf Hitler has the man executed and demands the deadline be set back by three. * 1943, July 25 - September 8th - Benito Mussolini is overthrown, then reinstated when Axis forces take control of Northern Italy. During his capture, however, Mussolini's left arm was injured so badly it had to be amputated. German scientists replace Mussolini's missing arm with a robotic replacement, making him the first successful cyborg. Unfortunately, the new augmentation is rather clumsy and ineffectual. * 1943, October 30th - The newly rebuilt Union Prime is now operational. * 1944, June 6th - Allied Forces assault Normandy alongside the newly rebuilt Union Prime. Seeing action for time in seventy-seven years, Union Prime's debut is a massive success for the Allied Forces. * 1944, July 20th - Operation Valkyrie, a plan to assassinate German leader Adolf Hitler, ends in failure as Hitler survives. However, Hitler is grievously injured in the blast, the explosion costs him both his legs and his left arm. Along with the right side of his face. * 1944, July 30th - After ten days in a medically induced coma, Hitler's missing limbs are replaced with robotic augmentations. The cybernetic replacements, hastily and desperately crafted, prove to be very poor. The legs do not function and the arm is unresponsive lumbering. The facial augmentations are also completely useless. A distraught Hitler orders the scientists involved with his surgery executed before they repair the faults they made, leaving Hitler severely crippled for the remainder of his life. * 1945, February 8th - The Yalta Conference is held. * 1945, March 7th - While crossing the Rhine River in Germany, Union Prime is destroyed by a direct airstrike from the Axis Aerocarrier. Leaving the allied forces to fight the remainder of the war alone. * 1945, April 30th - Fearing further airstrikes could decimate the allied war effort, the US government orders a nuclear strike on Hitler's Aerocarrier. The strike completely destroys the ship, along with the entire capital city of Berlin. * 1945, May 7th - Germany surrenders unconditionally to the Allied Forces. * 1945, August 5th - The United States drops an atomic bomb on Hiroshima. * 1945, August 9th - The United States drops an atomic bomb on Nagasaki. * 1945, September 2nd - Having agreed in principle to unconditional surrender on August 14, 1945, Japan formally surrenders, ending World War II. The Red War * 1946 - Scattered pieces of Union Prime are scavenged by Soviet Union forces. * 1947 - The Russian Mob sets up shop in Steelport and Circle Falls. * 1948, February 25th - The Communist Party of Czechoslovakia, with Soviet backing, assumes undisputed control over the government of Czechoslovakia. * 1948, June 24th - The Berlin Blockade, the first international crisis of the Cold War, begins. Tensions rise between Allied Forces and the Soviet Union. * 1949, September 21st - Communist leader Mao Zedong officially takes control of Chinese Government. * 1950, February 9th - Joseph McCarthy begins communist witch hunt. Accidentally finds actual witches, but no communists. * 1950, June 25th - North Korea invades South Korea, beginning the Korean War. * 1950, November 15 - United Nations forces approach the Yalu River. In response, China intervenes in Korea again, but with a 500,000 strong army. This offensive forces the United Nations back towards South Korea. * 1951, January 4th - The combined forces of North Korea and China successfully push back American forces in Seoul. * 1951, April 2nd - President Harry S. Truman orders the immediate recall of all US forces in Korea. The Korean War officially ends in failure. * 1951, June 4th - Emboldened by their success in Korea, the Chinese Government makes plans to directly invade America. * 1952, March 15th - Joe McCarthy continues communist goose chase, discovers several senators to actually be geese in human disguises. Still fails to find any actual communists. * 1952, July 25th - US forces create massive blockade around Alaska and Hawaii in fear of communist attack. * 1952, November 4th - Joe McCarthy is elected president in a landside victory. Declares: "We WILL find the communists in our government, wherever they hide." * 1953, January 20th - President Joe McCarthy is officially inaugurated. * 1953, April 10th - After less than three months in office, President McCarthy outs over thirty-two "communist infiltrators" in the house and senate. * 1953, July 27 - Chinese forces attack and capture Guam, marking the very first lost territory in the war. * 1953, August 8th - Soviet forces destroy US blockade. US moves forces closer to homeland. * 1953, September 1st - President McCarthy forms secretive council known as "The Majestic 12" to help battle communist threat. This group includes infamous former German scientist Doctor Oddgood. * 1953, November 5th - Soviet forces attack Anchorage, Alaska. * 1954, March 10th - Chinese and Korean forces invade Hawaii. * 1954, June 2nd - Hawaii and Alaska are lost to invading forces. * 1954, July 3rd - US government commissions the creation of millions of suits of high-tech, radiation proof power armor and the construction of thousands of underground vaults all across the countryside. * 1955, April 8th - The UN is disbanded due to it's complete uselessness. * 1955, June 21st - President McCarthy signs bill into law eliminating the two party system. Announces plans to pass new bills that "fundamentally reshape" the US political system. * 1955, August 4th - Government power armor initiative is completed. Russian spies steal blueprints and produce shoddier, more useless knockoff version. * 1956 - US forces recapture Alaska. * 1957 - Government research team, led by Doctor Oddgood, creates new, more deadly type of nuclear missile, codenamed "The Red Balloon." * 1958, July 9th - President McCarthy signs bill allowing him indefinite presidency until the end of the Red War. * 1958, December 6th - US forces push Soviets out of Hawaii. * 1959 - US forces invade Russia, British forces invade China. * 1960 - Scientific community of Circle Falls builds massive blast-proof, radiation-proof dome. Promises to develop same for all major cities. * 1961 - Soviet Union completes their own massive dome over Moscow. * 1963 - President McCarthy is killed in attempted coup by secret service. Vice President Nixon assumes power. * 1964 - Nuclear war begins as each side launches ninety-nine missiles. Nuclear bombs drop on every major city everywhere, destroying virtually all life on earth and irradiating it's surface for a hundred years. The Lost Era * 1964, January - One week after the great nuclear holocaust, the hierarchy of Circle Falls declares martial law. * 1964, March - Massive riots break out all over Circle Falls. The Police Force, now declared a militia, uses lethal force against the rioters. * 1964, April - The various riot gangs organize, forming a faction known as "The Resistance." * 1964, June - After a brutal conflict, The Resistance conquers Westside. * 1967 - The leading members of the Circle Falls government form an organization called "The Order" to combat The Resistance. * 1969 - A crackdown is declared on Resistance members in all areas of Circle Falls occupied by The Order. The Civil War of Circuit Falls begins. * 1971 - Several leading members of are killed in a bombing. In response, The Order arrests several key members of The Resistance. * 1974 - With public support growing for The Resistance, The Order commissions the scientific community of Circle Falls to create a series of urban power armor to help it's enforcers combat the rebels. * 1975 - The Resistance begins to scavenge power armor from dead enforces. Unfortunately, due to their limited understanding of the technology, they are unable to use the scavenged tech against The Order. * 1977 - The Resistance gains more ground against The Order, taking over Downtown Circle Falls. * 1980 - The Resistance takes control of The Market District. * 1982 - Riots begin to break out all over Central Square. A disenfranchised police force refuses to quell the riots, sympathizing with the protesters. * 1984 - The remaining remnants of The Order declare the Circle Falls situation "unsalvageable" and escape from the city into the wasteland. * 1992 - The remnants of The Order run out of anti-radiation equipment. Instead of dying, most of the members mutate in strange and confusing ways, becoming Wastelanders. * 2000 - The Circle Falls Senate is formed in the hopes of creating a more free and democratic Circle Falls. * 2014 - Life in Circle Falls begins to normalize. * 2037 - The main water purification chip cleaning the water of Circle Falls breaks down, a lone wanderer is sent to retrieve a new one. * 2039 - The lone wanderer returns, covered in radiation and mutated into some kind of strange creature (specifically, a Brute.) he reeks of dead raiders and loose women. Unfortunately, in the three years he was searching for the water chip, Circle Falls found a better, more efficient way to purify water. The wanderer leaves in anger, taking the water chip with him. He is never seen again. * 2064 - The radioactive fallout coating the world dissipates, the planet becomes inhabitable again. * 2077 - A massive expedition to reclaim the shattered pieces of the world begins. The Circle Falls Senate forms a small militia of scavengers and mercenaries to explore the wastes and bring back scavenged items and tech. * 2085 - Over the years, several vaults containing large pockets of human life are discovered. Secretly built by both the Allied and Soviet governments before the nuclear holocaust, it is believed these vaults exist all over the world. Small pockets of humanity still exist and thrive in certain areas. * 2090 - The ruins of Steelport are reclaimed by humanity. * 2100 - The population of Nekropolis is discovered to still exist. Protected from nuclear fallout by the massive cloud of pollution surrounding it, the population of the city had survived for years, largely ignorant to the events of the outside world. The Reconstruction Era 2105 - 2320 * The Coalition of United Human Unions is formed to govern the newly retaken human settlements that surrounded the wasteland. The Platinum Era Present